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Board of Directors

Board Members

Lawrence Koppelman, Chair of the Board

Mr. Koppelman is a Founding Director and Chair of the Board of American Riviera Bank and has over 40-years of mortgage lending and banking experience. He serves on the Audit, Executive/Governance, Loan, Compensation and Asset Liability Management Committees. Mr. Koppelman is the President of Koppelman & Co. and is a board member on two real estate funds. He was the Managing Director of Western Bank Mortgage Company from 1981 to 1993 originating over $1 billion annually in mortgage loans. He has also served on the Board of Directors of Direct Relief International and was a member of the Fannie Mae Western Advisory Board.

Darren D. Caesar, Vice Chair of the Board

Mr. Caesar is a Founding Director and Vice Chair of the Board of American Riviera Bank. He chairs the Executive/Governance Committee and sits on the Audit and Asset Liability Management Committees. He is an insurance executive for HUB International Insurance Services, an international insurance broker for middle market businesses and high net worth individuals. Mr. Caesar’s current role is Chief Commercial Lines Officer responsible for the commercial insurance operations for HUB International of California and Managing Director of Hub International Investment Services, Inc. Mr. Caesar is Past President of the Channel Islands YMCA. He is an active board member of the Santa Barbara High School Foundation Capital Campaign, Westmont College Foundation and UCSB Economic Forecast Project.

Jeff DeVine, President and Chief Executive Officer

Mr. DeVine, with over 26-years of experience in banking, was named a Director and President/Chief Executive Officer of American Riviera Bank in 2008 and serves on the Executive/Governance, Loan, and Asset Liability Management Committees. Prior to joining ARB, he has held positions in commercial, retail, private and investment banking. Mr. DeVine holds a Bachelor's degree in Quantitative Economics from UC San Diego and graduated with honors from Pacific Coast Banking School at the University of Washington. Mr. DeVine is committed to the local community where he has resided for over 21-years. He is currently President of the Lobero Theatre Foundation, Vice Chair of the California Independent Bankers Association, a Steering Committee member and former Co-Chair of the South Coast Business and Technology Awards, and a member of the Executive Committee of Premier Professionals of Santa Barbara.

Frank Burgess

Mr. Burgess is a Founding Director of American Riviera Bank. He chairs the Asset Liability Management Committee and sits on the Loan Committee. In 1974, Mr. Burgess founded and is currently a Director of Madison Investment Holdings, Inc. a portfolio management firm with $15 billion of assets under management, located in Madison, WI, Toronto, ON, New York, NY and Scottsdale, AZ. The firm is broad based, managing 30 mutual funds, individual managed accounts and institutional accounts. In 1994, Mr. Burgess helped organize, and is currently a Director of Capitol Bankshares Inc. of Madison, WI, serving on the Investment, Compensation and Loan Committees. He is a Trustee of some of the Madison Family of Mutual Funds and is President of the Outrider Foundation.

Joe Campanelli

Mr. Campanelli has been head of a successful general contracting firm headquartered in Santa Barbara for over 40 years, specializing in custom residential, commercial and green building. He served two terms as President of the Santa Barbara Contractors Association established in 1948, and is currently a director of the non-profit environmental education foundation. He received multiple "Builder of the Year" awards for residential, commercial, and environmental building work. He continues to serve on the board of the Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra, UCSB Economic Forecast and is a founder of the Green Building Alliance.

Doug Margerum

Mr. Margerum, a Founding Director of American Riviera Bank, chairs the Compensation Committee and is a member of the Audit Committee. Mr. Margerum is the owner of Margerum Wine Company and serves as Director of Winemaking. Additionally, he owned and operated the Wine Cask in Santa Barbara from 1981 to 2007 where he earned the Wine Spectator’s Grand Award. In 2009, Mr. Margerum became a partner in the re-opened Wine Cask. In 2017 Margerum sold his interest in Wine Cask once again. As a resident of Santa Barbara for over 38-years, Mr. Margerum has aligned himself with several local charitable organizations such as Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA), UCSB Economics Department, DAWGS, Cold Noses / Warm Hearts, Organic Soup Kitchen, Direct Relief, Davy’s Voice, SPCA and the Arthritis Foundation.

Leonard Himelsein

Mr. Himelsein was a Director and Vice Chair of The Bank of Santa Barbara and joined the American Riviera Bank as a Director upon the completion of the merger in January 2016. He is currently a member of the Executive/Governance and Loan Committees. Mr. Himelsein has founded several successful companies in South Africa that expanded to Europe and North America. Mr. Himelsein pays homage to his roots as a 40-year member of the esteemed World Federation of Diamond Bourses and the Diamond Club of South Africa. Locally, he serves as the Vice President and Chair of the Finance Committee of the University Club of Santa Barbara and is a member of the Santa Barbara Yacht Club.

Jody Dolan Holehouse CPA, CMA

Ms. Holehouse, a Director of American Riviera Bank since 2011, chairs the bank’s Audit Committee and sits on the Loan Committee. She is a partner in the firm of Nasif, Hicks, Harris & Co., LLP serving individual and business clients in tax planning and preparation, accounting and business analysis. Ms. Holehouse holds a Bachelor of Arts degree with high honors from UC Santa Barbara and is a Past President and current member of the California Society of Certified Public Accountants Channel Counties Chapter and the Institute of Management Accountants Santa Barbara Chapter. She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Western Pension Benefits Conference. In our community, Ms. Holehouse is a member and the former President of the Rotary Club of Santa Barbara Sunrise, current President of the Club’s Foundation and former President of Girls Incorporated of Greater Santa Barbara. She was a founding board member and Chief Financial Officer of the San Marcos High School AAPLE Foundation.

Joe Howell, Esq.

Mr. Howell has been a Director of American Riviera Bank since 2012. He currently is a member of the Executive/Governance and Compensation Committees. Mr. Howell has been a business and transactions attorney in Santa Barbara since 1974 and is a founding partner of the local law firm of Howell Moore & Gough LLP. He represents individuals and business entities, from startups to seasoned enterprises, in a variety of industries and professions, devoting much of his practice to mergers, acquisitions and sale of business transactions. Mr. Howell has been active in many non-profit and community endeavors; he currently serves on the Santa Barbara County Board of Education and is Past President and a current board member of Santa Barbara Partners in Education and Santa Barbara Athletic Round Table.

Chuck Slosser

Mr. Slosser joined the Board in July 2017 and serves on the Audit Committee. He moved to Santa Barbara shortly after receiving a Ph.D. in History from UCLA when he became Director of Corporate and Foundation Relations at UCSB. He was later appointed Director of Development at the Museum of Natural History and then President and CEO of the Santa Barbara Foundation where he retired in 2008. Today, Mr, Slosser is a consultant to various philanthropic organizations and serves on the Santa Barbara Foundation's Investment Committee, Visiting Nurses Investment Committee, The Brander Family Foundation, PlanitNow, Foundation Roundtable, and the Philanthropy Committee for Reiter Affiliated Companies.